JP2006039982A - Control method for information processor, information processor, and control program for information processor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make it possible to use a unified user interface for performing user operation or setup operation of peripheral equipment, as well as the interface by which a user on the host device side accesses the peripheral equipment. <P>SOLUTION: A network communication path which allows resources of peripheral equipment connected to a local interface by a local interface driver 26 to seem to be network resources accessible in a specified network communication system from the perspective of application software 21 accessing resources of the peripheral equipment connected via a network interface in the same network communication system. Depending on the peripheral equipment connected to each interface to which communication is performed, either the local interface driver 26 or a network interface driver 24 is selected. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for controlling an information processing apparatus connectable to a peripheral device via a local interface or a network interface, an information processing apparatus, and a control program for the information processing apparatus.

  Conventionally, a local interface such as USB or IEEE1284 is used to connect a peripheral device such as a facsimile machine, MFP (multifunction composite image processing apparatus), or printer to a host device such as a PC (personal computer). In addition, a configuration in which a peripheral device is arranged on a LAN and the peripheral device and the host device are connected via a network interface is known.

In this type of device, network handling (for example, IP address assignment) is performed based on a user's manual operation, and automatic handling is performed to a considerable extent. For example, a plurality of network interfaces There is known a device that determines which interface is connected to a network and switches control (for example, Patent Document 1 below).
JP-A-8-255118

  As described above, at present either a local or network interface can be used to connect a peripheral device to a host device, but predetermined access to the peripheral device (for example, peripheral device setup and data for the peripheral device). Each application that performs input / output) must create a dedicated application depending on whether the interface connecting the peripheral device is a local interface or a network interface.

  For example, a peripheral device connected to a network interface uses existing general-purpose software, for example, a network application such as a WEB browser, as a network application for accessing the peripheral device, and sets up the peripheral device and inputs / outputs data to / from the peripheral device. Although the configuration is known, such general-purpose software cannot be used for interface-connected peripheral devices, and it is necessary to prepare another dedicated application for interface-connected peripheral devices.

  Therefore, the user needs to be aware of the interface to which the peripheral device is connected and the connection method for the interface, and switch the application to be used.

  In view of the above problems, it goes without saying that it is preferable to access the peripheral device using a single unified user interface regardless of the interface to which the peripheral device is connected. Thus, it is considered that the development cost of software is reduced, and the operation form of the user is simplified and facilitated.

  In view of the above problems, the problem of the present invention is that it is not necessary to separately provide software for accessing the peripheral device on the host device side for each interface to which the peripheral device is connected, and is limited to the interface to which the peripheral device is connected. It is intended to be able to use a unified user interface for data input / output and set-up operations for peripheral devices without being performed.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, in the present invention, an information processing device control method, an information processing device, and an information processing device control program connectable to a peripheral device via a local interface or a network interface are connected to the local interface. As a network communication resource that can be accessed using the same network communication method from the application software that accesses the peripheral device resource connected via the network interface by a predetermined network communication method. Using a local interface driver that generates a visible network communication path, via a peripheral device connected via the local interface, or via the network interface Adopting a configuration to communicate with the peripheral device by selecting either the local interface driver or the network interface driver that drives the network interface depending on which of the connected peripheral devices did.

  With the above configuration, operations, setup, data input / output, etc. of local interface-connected peripheral devices that were conventionally covered by a dedicated tool are executed by a network application that is common to general-purpose peripheral devices (for example, a WEB browser). Software development costs can be reduced, and a unified user interface can be provided for data input / output and setup operations on peripheral devices without being limited to the interface to which the peripheral devices are connected. .

  Hereinafter, as an embodiment of the present invention, a PC (hereinafter also simply referred to as a computer) that can be connected to a peripheral device via a local interface or a network interface is illustrated, and a communication device such as a facsimile machine or MFP is used as the peripheral device. Illustrate.

  In the following description, the interface is not limited to the interface for accessing the communication device, and the local interface is connected from the PC so that the same user interface can be used for user operation and setup operation of the communication device from the PC side. When accessing the communication device via the network, it is possible to use the same application (for example, a WEB browser) that is normally used for resources on the network.

  FIG. 1 shows a network environment in which the present invention can be implemented. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 11 denotes a computer (PC), which is connected to a communication device (1) 13 through a local interface 12. As this local interface 12, USB, IEEE1284, IEEE1394, etc. can be used.

  The computer 11 is connected to the network 15 via the network interface 14. Although the configuration of the network 15 is arbitrary, an IP network configured on CSMA / CD (Ethernet: trade name), which is considered to be most popular, is considered here. A communication device (2) 16 is connected to the network 15.

  Here, it is assumed that the communication devices 13 and 16 have a configuration such as a facsimile device or an MFP (multifunction composite image processing device).

  For example, when the communication devices 13 and 16 are facsimile devices, these devices have image input / output means and can perform facsimile communication via a communication line such as a telephone line (not shown) or the network 15. Also, facsimile communication is performed in response to a request from the computer 11 side, and information (communication data, management information, setup information, etc.) of the communication devices 13 to 16 is accessed via the local interface 12 (or via the network 15). be able to.

  FIG. 2 schematically shows the configuration of the main part of this embodiment of the control system of the computer 11. In FIG. 2, illustration of portions not related to the present embodiment is omitted. For example, a configuration such as a CPU, a memory, an HDD, etc. in the computer 11 is not shown as a matter of course.

  In FIG. 2, reference numeral 21 denotes network application software for accessing the resources of the communication device 13 and the communication device 16. In this embodiment, not only the communication device 16 accessed via the network 15 but also the communication device 13 connected to the local interface 12 uses a common network application (for example, a WEB browser).

  Reference numeral 22 denotes a hook processing unit that mediates between the network application software 21, the network interface driver 24, and the local interface driver 26.

  The hook processing unit 22 performs appropriate data format and protocol conversion depending on whether the communication device 16 is accessed via the network 15 or the communication device 13 is accessed via the local interface 12.

  Reference numeral 23 denotes an interface between the hook processing unit 22 and the network interface driver 24. The interface 23 is configured to cause TCP (UDP) / IP communication between the network application software 21 to the hook processing unit 22 and the network interface driver 24 in a normal TCP (UDP) / IP network layer. .

  Reference numeral 24 is for sending data sent from the hook processing unit 22 via the interface 23 to the network 15, while sending data sent from the network 15 to the hook processing unit 22 via the interface 23. Network interface driver. Normally, such a network interface driver 24 is configured as a network driver that mutually converts CSMA / CD communication on the network 15 side and TCP (UDP) / IP communication on the interface 23 side.

  Reference numeral 25 denotes an interface between the hook processing unit 22 and the interface driver 26. The interface 25 is configured to perform TCP (UDP) / IP communication between the network application software 21 to the hook processing unit 22 and the interface driver 26.

  Reference numeral 26 indicates that data sent from the hook processing unit 22 via the interface 25 is sent to the local interface 12, and data sent from the local interface 12 is sent to the hook processing unit 22 via the interface 25. Is a local interface driver.

  The interface driver 26 shows the resources of the local interface 12 such as USB or the communication device 13 ahead as a network resource (a communication target having an IP address and accessible via a TCP or UDP port having a specific number). Configure as follows. Accordingly, the network application software 21 appropriately generates a specific IP address generated for a specific resource (communication data, management information, setup information, etc.) of the communication device 13 connected to the end of the local interface 12. Access is possible via a specific port (80: HTTP port) of the IP address.

  The configuration shown in FIG. 2 can be considered as a so-called network application wrapper because the communication operation (communication state) of the network application software 21 is hooked as a whole and communication via the local interface is executed as network communication.

  FIG. 3 shows the configuration of the control system of the communication apparatus 11 of FIG. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 31 denotes a CPU. The CPU 31 controls the local interface 34 and the network interface 35 in accordance with a control program stored in the ROM 32.

  Actually, the network interface driver 24 and the local interface driver 26 are configured as network driver software that drives the local interface 34 and the network interface 35 and are executed by the CPU 31. The hook processing unit 22 is also configured as software executed by the CPU 31.

  The ROM 32 stores a program described later (FIGS. 4 to 8), various control constants used for controlling the apparatus, and the like.

  The RAM 33 is formed with a program work area and a data area for storing data received from the local interface 34 and the network interface 35.

  The local interface 34 is configured by an interface card such as USB, IEEE 1284, IEEE 1394 or the like, and the network interface 35 for communicating with the network 15 is configured by a network interface card using a communication method such as CSMA / CD.

  In the above configuration, the local interface 34 (12 in FIG. 1) in FIG. 3 is configured by a USB or the like. Usually, this type of interface is different from a network protocol particularly when a facsimile or printer is connected. Protocols such as SCSI and IEEE 1284 are used.

  However, in the present embodiment, the configuration of the local interface driver 26 in FIG. 2 allows the network application software operating on the computer 11 to use the same network protocol (TCP / IP) used on the network 15 side when communicating with the communication device 13. , UDP / IP, etc.).

  Thus, when accessing the communication device 13 from the computer 11 via the local interface, the same application (for example, a WEB browser) as that used for resources on the normal network can be used.

  Note that in order to generate an IP network communication path on the local interface 34 (for example, via USB) in this way, PPP (Point to Point Protocol) that can generate a network connection without depending on the hardware configuration of the interface. : RFC1661, RFC2153, STD51, etc.) may be used.

  At the beginning, PPP implementations were often used on serial ports, but nowadays, PPPoE (PPP Over Ethernet (trade name): RFC2516) implemented by tunneling PPP on CSMA / CD is used. It is widely used for network connection of PC and ADSL modem.

  Since PPP does not depend on the hardware configuration of the interface, if the local interface 34 is USB, a point-to-point network connection on the USB local interface 34 can be achieved by using PPP (as in PPPoE). Can be generated. The PPP layer used by the computer 11 and the communication device 13 can be incorporated into a part of the OS of the computer 11 and the communication device 13 in the form of software such as the interface driver 26 described above.

  The network interface including the generation of the IP address corresponding to the local interface by the local interface driver 26 may be manually controlled according to the user's setup operation. It may be determined whether or not the communication device 13) is connected and executed when a peripheral device is connected to the local interface. For example, a local interface such as a USB can dynamically attach and detach a device, and the CPU 31 can know what device is connected to the local interface using information such as a USB device ID. Therefore, when a peripheral device that matches the communication specifications of this embodiment is connected, the above-described network communication path generation processing can be automatically performed. In addition, in a local interface such as IEEE1284, it is possible to know whether a device is connected according to the state of a predetermined interface signal line or the like, and by making an inquiry through an appropriate interface, the communication specification of this embodiment It is possible to check whether or not a peripheral device matching the above is connected.

  In the control example shown below, it is assumed that peripheral devices (communication devices 13 and 16) are connected to both the local interface and the network interface for ease of explanation. In the configuration for determining whether or not to generate a network communication path according to whether or not a peripheral device (communication device 13) is connected to the interface, whether to enable or disable the network communication path on the local interface Until the next change in the connection state of the local interface, the valid / invalid state is held by a flag or the like, and whether or not communication is performed using the network communication path on the local interface according to this (for example, a step described later) Local / network interface such as S42 It is possible to control the distribution processing) of the face.

  Next, communication control in the above configuration will be described. 4 to 6 show the flow of a communication control program executed by the computer 11 of FIG. The illustrated procedure is stored in the ROM 32 (or other storage medium) as a control program of the CPU 31 of FIG.

  FIG. 4 is a process executed when the network application wrapper in FIG. 2 is requested to transmit data from the application (network application software 21 in FIG. 2).

  In FIG. 4, when transmission data is received from the application to the network application wrapper in step S41, it is determined in step S42 whether the transmission data received in step S41 is data for the local interface (34 in FIG. 3). Here, if the transmission data received from the application in step S41 is directed to the local interface, the process proceeds to step S43. If the received transmission data is not directed to the local interface, the process proceeds to step S45.

  Whether the transmission data received from the application is intended for the local interface can be easily determined by checking whether the destination address of the transmission data (IP packet) is an IP address generated for the local interface by the interface driver 26, for example. Can be determined.

  In step S43, the transmission data received in step S41 is converted into a data format that can be transmitted from the local interface. That is, if the local interface is USB, the transmission data received in step S41 is converted to a predetermined data format that can be transmitted by USB and understood by the communication device (13) connected to the local interface.

  In this communication on the local interface, if the IP packet can flow on the local interface, information unique to the IP packet, such as the IP sequence number and transmission / reception address, can be transmitted to the communication device. However, since the purpose of the network application wrapper of this embodiment is to guarantee the operation of the network application that accesses the communication device, information specific to the IP packet such as the IP sequence number and transmission / reception address is not lost. Transmission to a communication device is not necessarily an essential requirement. Whether to perform IP communication by communication on the local interface or communication in a unique format depends on the communication protocol with the communication device connected to the local interface. It may be determined in advance and follow this.

  In step S44, the transmission data for the local interface converted in step S43 is transferred to the local interface driver 26.

  On the other hand, in step S45, the transmission data received in step S41 is converted into a data format for the network interface. In step S46, the transmission data for the network interface converted in step S45 is transferred to the network interface driver 24. In this case, if no special conversion is required, the IP data is directly transferred to the network interface (35 in FIG. 3).

  FIG. 5 shows processing executed when data is received by the local interface driver 26. In step S51 of FIG. 5, the local interface driver 26 receives the data, and in step S52, the data received in step S51 is converted into a data format required by the network application software 21. If the communication protocol with the communication device (13) connected to the local interface does not include information specific to the IP packet such as the IP sequence number and transmission / reception address in the information received from the communication device via the local interface. For example, these are generated as appropriate and arranged in the form of an IP packet that can be received by the network application software 21 (TCP / UDP).

  In step S53, the data converted in step S52 is transferred to the network application software 21.

  FIG. 6 shows processing executed when the network interface driver 24 receives data from the network 15. In step S61 of FIG. 6, the data is received by the network interface driver 24. Subsequently, in step S62, the data received in step S61 is converted into a data format required by the network application software 21. The process of step S62 is, for example, a process of converting a CSMA / CD data format into a TCP / UDP-IP data format.

  In step S63, the data converted in step S62 is transferred to the network application 21.

  As described above, by providing the network application wrapper as shown in FIG. 2, the operation, setup, data input / output, etc. of the peripheral devices connected by the local interface, which were conventionally covered by a dedicated tool, can be connected to the network. It can be executed by a common and general-purpose network application (for example, a WEB browser) with other peripheral devices, and software development costs can be reduced, and the data input to the peripheral device is not limited to the interface to which the peripheral device is connected. A unified user interface can be provided for output and setup operations.

  As mentioned earlier, the (IP) network communication emulated by the network application wrapper shows the communication resources of the peripheral devices connected to the local interface as network communication resources to the network application (for example, WEB browser). It is sufficient that the communication operation of the network application (for example, WEB browser) can be guaranteed. The specification of (IP) network communication emulated by the network application wrapper may be appropriately determined based on the communication protocol with the peripheral device connected to the local interface (the communication device described above). Any design can be used. For example, if a WEB browser is used for a network application, it is necessary to provide a WEB server function that can respond to the HTTP connection request of the WEB browser. The local interface driver (26) also provides this WEB server function part. It is conceivable to configure.

  Here, FIG. 7 shows an example of storage of processing steps of the network application wrapper of the computer 11 as a memory map. A storage medium for the network application wrapper is arbitrary, but is stored in advance in the ROM 32 or stored as an OS system software in an external storage medium such as an HDD, and the computer 11 is loaded at startup. Can be considered. In many cases, this kind of software is copied onto the RAM 33 (or in the case of the ROM 32, the ROM is executed).

  Reference numeral 71 in FIG. 7 is an area in which a process for hooking data to be transmitted / received between the network application driver 24 and the local device driver is stored. Reference numeral 72 indicates whether the network interface driver 24 is in accordance with the request contents from the network application 21. Reference numeral 73 denotes an area in which a process for determining which of the interface drivers 26 to use is stored. Reference numeral 73 denotes a data format corresponding to a connection destination of the network interface driver 24 or the local interface driver 26. Reference numeral 74 denotes an area in which a process for conversion is stored, and a request from the network interface driver 24 or the local interface driver 26 is transmitted to the network. An area where the step of converting the data format click application 21 requests are stored.

  The present invention relates to a network interface for connecting to a peripheral device and a computer having a local interface or an information processing device functioning as a similar host, and what information processing device actually performs the information processing. It can implement without being limited.

  In the above embodiment, the peripheral device is exemplified by a communication device such as a facsimile machine or MFP, but it goes without saying that any peripheral device such as a printer or a scanner can be used.

  Software for realizing the method and program of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned ROM (RAM), but other storage media such as a floppy (trade name) disk, a CDROM, a hard disk, a memory card, and a magneto-optical disk. It can also be stored in the network, and can be installed in these devices via a network and can be configured to update.

It is explanatory drawing which showed the use environment of the information processing apparatus which employ | adopted this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed typically the structure of the network application wrapper implement | achieved on the computer of FIG. It is the block diagram which showed the hardware constitutions of the control system of the computer of FIG. It is the flowchart figure which showed the communication processing procedure of the network application wrapper by this invention. It is the flowchart figure which showed the communication processing procedure of the network application wrapper by this invention. It is the flowchart figure which showed the communication processing procedure of the network application wrapper by this invention. It is explanatory drawing which showed the example of a storage mode of the software which implements this invention.

Explanation of symbols

11 Computer 12 Local Interface 13, 16 Communication Device 15 Network 21 Network Application Software 22 Hook Processing Unit 24 Network Interface Driver 26 Local Interface Driver 31 CPU
32 ROM
33 RAM
34 Local interface 35 Network interface

Claims (4)

In a method for controlling an information processing apparatus connectable to a peripheral device via a local interface or a network interface,
Peripheral device resources connected to the local interface can be accessed using the same network communication method from application software that accesses the peripheral device resources connected via the network interface using a predetermined network communication method. Using a local interface driver that creates a network communication path that looks like a secure network communication resource,
The local interface driver or the network interface driver that drives the network interface depending on whether it communicates with a peripheral device connected via the local interface or a peripheral device connected via the network interface A method for controlling an information processing apparatus, wherein communication with the peripheral device is performed by selecting any of the above.   The network interface is generated by the local interface driver when it is determined whether a peripheral device is connected to the local interface and a peripheral device is connected to the local interface. The control method of the information processing apparatus according to 1.   An information processing apparatus that implements the control method for the information processing apparatus according to claim 1.   A control program for an information processing apparatus, wherein the information processing apparatus control method according to claim 1 or 2 is implemented by controlling predetermined information processing apparatus hardware.

Images